Boeing (BA) is hiring 300 contract mechanics and inspectors to work in its South Carolina plant to help build 787 Dreamliner jets. Boeing laid off contract employees at the same plant last year.

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Boeing (BA) will add more than 300 contract mechanics and inspectors at its South Carolina factory to ramp up production of the flagship 787 Dreamliner jet.

Shares of the airplane maker fell 1.6% to $142.07 Thursday.

According to The Wall Street Journal, Boeing could increase hiring to between 500 and 1,000 workers. In 2013, the company let go of hundreds of contract workers to cut costs at the North Charleston, S.C., factory. Boeing hasn't been able to ramp up production while cutting the contract workers, who are typically paid more than staff employees.

Boeing aims to produce 40 Dreamliner jets in the factory in 2014, up from the 14 made in 2013.

TheStreet Ratings team rates BOEING CO as a Buy with a ratings score of A+. TheStreet Ratings Team has this to say about their recommendation:

"We rate BOEING CO (BA) a BUY. This is based on the convergence of positive investment measures, which should help this stock outperform the majority of stocks that we rate. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its revenue growth, good cash flow from operations, solid stock price performance, growth in earnings per share and increase in net income. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company shows low profit margins."

Highlights from the analysis by TheStreet Ratings Team goes as follows:

BA's revenue growth has slightly outpaced the industry average of 9.6%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues rose by 10.6%. Growth in the company's revenue appears to have helped boost the earnings per share.

Net operating cash flow has significantly increased by 75.93% to $2,808.00 million when compared to the same quarter last year. In addition, BOEING CO has also vastly surpassed the industry average cash flow growth rate of 19.24%.

Investors have apparently begun to recognize positive factors similar to those we have mentioned in this report, including earnings growth. This has helped drive up the company's shares by a sharp 88.60% over the past year, a rise that has exceeded that of the S&P 500 Index. Looking ahead, the stock's sharp rise over the last year has already helped drive it to a level which is relatively expensive compared to the rest of its industry. We feel, however, that other strengths this company displays justify these higher price levels.

BOEING CO has improved earnings per share by 11.9% in the most recent quarter compared to the same quarter a year ago. This company has reported somewhat volatile earnings recently. But, we feel it is poised for EPS growth in the coming year. During the past fiscal year, BOEING CO reported lower earnings of $5.12 versus $5.32 in the prior year. This year, the market expects an improvement in earnings ($6.75 versus $5.12).

The net income growth from the same quarter one year ago has exceeded that of the Aerospace & Defense industry average, but is less than that of the S&P 500. The net income increased by 12.2% when compared to the same quarter one year prior, going from $1,032.00 million to $1,158.00 million.